Storm tops Baltimore, locks in No. 2 playoff spot

BALTIMORE — On a night Joe Hills set the Arena Football League mark for consecutive games with a touchdown, he wasn't even the top performer for the Storm.

Kendrick Ings ran back two kickoffs for scores and had a dramatic receiving touchdown to end the first half as Tampa Bay beat Baltimore 69-56.

Hills made it 6-0 with a 2-yard catch on fourth and goal, giving him a touchdown in a 79th straight contest. But Ings took over from there, going for 243 total yards and making it 42-28 at halftime with a spectacular 28-yard catch and run. That was two plays after LaRoche Jackson came up with an interception for Tampa Bay (9-3).

Mike Lindsey and Ings scored on consecutive kickoff returns in the second quarter, but Baltimore (4-7) led 28-27 in the final minute. Lindsey caught an 8-yard touchdown pass with 34 seconds left — the Storm's only 15 seconds of offensive possession in the quarter — before the wild conclusion to the half.

Tampa Bay scored on all three of its second-half possessions, each time after Baltimore had reduced its deficit to a touchdown. A final long pass to Hills put the game away, and he finished with eight catches for 73 yards and three scores.